Live at Leeds '13

The 1975 at Live at Leeds

Sound Influx started Live At Leeds 2013 with a visit to The Wardrobe on the Friday night to catch Bearfoot Beware and Wet Nun’s sets. Although Bearfoot Beware entertained, it was Wet Nuns who really impressed. The duo created a sound of a volume seemingly beyond their means. That sound was full of huge riffs and thunderous drums, and boy was it LOUD. Their blend of lo-fi blues/punk really must be experienced live to have its sheer power appreciated fully.

Wild Swim

On the Saturday, it was a long walk to the Brudenell Social Club (buses/taxis are cheating, apparently) to catch the end of Wild Swim’s set. Their emotional songs with Wild Beasts style keys and vocals were certainly worth the walk, especially closer ‘Echo’. Next, to the Faversham, where Swiss Lips’ energetic set surely won them some new fans. The band’s sugar sweet vocals, synths and drum machine beats are easy to hate, but after seeing them live, this cynical view might just have changed for some. The Manc popsters really did bring a fun atmosphere, and live, their sound is just much less, well…annoying. One band who didn’t need to convince anyone was Dinosaur Pile-Up. The local lads certainly know how to whip up a crowd and there were circles going from early in the set. But my god were they loud. Loud is to be expected and anticipated from this band, but ears ringing four hours and the lasting regret of forgetting earplugs isn’t. This was a bit of a shame as it meant the set wasn’t as enjoyable as it could have been.

Swiss Lips

After a break for burritos (the ultimate festival food, probably), we got ourselves to the Stylus to see the fantastic MØ, who’s energetic stage presence combined with infectious pop songs made for a really great set. The use of projections as a backdrop was a nice touch, adding an extra dimension to the show for those at the back. ‘Pilgrim’ and ‘Glass’, with Singer Karen Marie Ørsted prowling the stage in a leopard print bomber jacket. From one definite highlight of the weekend and straight on to another, I managed to get to the front for Savage’s set. That renowned intensity wasn’t hampered too much by sound difficulties with singer Jehn’s mic. Once these problems were fixed the launched into a full on rendition of ‘Shut Up’, and there’s probably some irony to be found in there somewhere. The rest of the set, with rumbling bass, punchy drums and, of course, Jehn’s fierce, intense vocals made sure that savages’ performance stayed in my mind for a good long while. They scared and thrilled in equal measures and SI loved every minute.

Dinosaur Pile Up

After getting slightly lost, SI managed to arrive at the beautiful Holy Trinity church in time for Sóley’s sound check. Her set was beautiful, even despite a quite impossibly loud argument breaking out halfway through, which left a slightly awkward, embarrassed atmosphere lingering for a few songs. However this went away as throughout the rest of her set Sóley created such beautiful, haunting songs which had the audience in a sort of hushed reverence, befitting the church setting. ‘Pretty Face’ and ‘I’ll Drown’, with its echoing, sampled vocals, were the highlights of a truly captivating performance.

Embers were a last minute addition to the line-up, and although they clashed with headliners The Walkmen, they were un-missable, as a band who have played too few shows since they first burst onto the Manchester scene. And they didn’t disappoint, creating huge, reverberating songs that filled the tiny, boiling Nation Of Shopkeepers from wall to wall. It may have been the walking, or the heat, or the lack of sleep, but SI may have found ourselves getting a little emotional towards the end of their set. Embers’ blend of shoegaze and post-rock is immensely impressive live, and SI implores you to go and see them.

After realising that I had missed ‘The Rat’, SI is ashamed to say that we left The Walkmen’s set early. A whole day of intensive band watching, walking and getting lost in Leeds had taken its toll and we needed a bit of a sit down. As the Stylus was packed (and rightly so) for The Walkmen, we wandered down to The Mine to Watch Sky Larkin. To end the weekend with a band who have been a part of the Northern music scene for many years seemed fitting somehow, and was really quite special. It seems they have only got better since we last saw them all those years ago.

Live At Leeds, though exhausting, was a thoroughly fantastic festival with a great atmosphere. And, for this writer, who had never been to Leeds before, it also proved a fantastic tour around the city and some of its impressive venues. The only downside was missing so many bands due to clashes , walking or both. Honourable mentions go to The Crookes, The Staves, Micky P Kerr and King Krule. We’re sure that there’ll be plenty of opportunities to see this lot soon though. Roll on Live At Leeds 2014!

Words: Holly Read Challen
Photos: Braden Fletcher

June Playlist / Round Up

Hello everyone, thanks for sticking with us throughout the month of June!

And what an excellent month it's been for new music, with reviews on our site of albums we've enjoyed from the likes of Edward Sharpe, O. Children, Citizens!, Metric, Momus and DIIV

But here are the June releases that really stood out to us, as well as a spotify playlist to delight yourself with an eclectic mix of 10 exceptional tracks we've been rinsing this month. Roll on July!
Liars - WIXIW  (full review here)


"every chop and change, and moment of apocalyptic brooding is visionary and carries thousands of times more depth than most modern experimental outfits. This is not their best album by any stretch, but it certainly warrants maximum attention over multiple listens, and is thoroughly engrossing and foreboding throughout. " 8.3 - Toby McCarron


Tomas Barfod - Salton Sea  (full review here)

"Whilst ‘ƒIN’ is still undoubtedly my favourite house record of the year, Tomas Barfod’s ‘Salton Sea’ comes a close second with its intricate layers and attention to detail." 8.1 - Aurora Mitchell

The Walkmen - Heaven (full review here)

"The Walkmen have risen, fallen, grown-up and risen again from the ashes.
Heaven? Close enough" 8.0 - Max Sefton

June 2012 - Sound Influx Playlist by Toby McCarron

The Walkmen - Heaven

In many ways the success of the twitchy pin-sharp punk of The Walkmen’s 2004 single ‘The Rat’ was the worst thing that could have happened to the sharp suited New Yorkers. After several years slogging away under the guise of Jonathan Fire*Eater and a critically successful but commercially disappointing debut album, to have a track good enough to be ranked 13th in NME’s songs of the decade and Pitchfork’s 6th best single of the year put them under intense pressure from their record company to repeat the trick. Like fellow New Yorkers, The Rapture, having a song go stratospheric seemed to send The Walkmen into a tailspin. Their follow-up records 2006’s ‘A Hundred Miles Off’ and a track-by-track cover of Harry Nilsson’s ‘Pussycats’ were not bad but they failed to capture the frenetic energy of their albatross single and their audience began to question whether the group would be able to bottle lightning twice.

Fortunately on 2010’s ‘Lisbon’ the group re-emerged with a new focus. The tracks stopped dealing with life in New York and took off in more ambitious directions and making ‘Lisbon’ both a critical success and gifting the group their highest US chart position to date (28)

It makes sense therefore for the quintet to quickly return to the studio and capitalise on their new found popularity. Heaven is the result and it serves up the best bits of everything they’ve done to date.

The opening track ‘We Can’t Be Beat’ is something of a misnomer, introducing hushed acoustic guitar and doo-wop vocals to the group’s repertoire. The rest of ‘Heaven’ however is split between bright classic guitar rock and the swaggering but thoughtful post-punk on which they’ve built their reputation. In fact, second track ‘Love is Luck’ could be their Elbow moment – when hard-working boys finally crack widescreen choruses without sacrificing the soul beneath. It sounds gigantic but it’s well anchored by Matt Barrick’s echoing drums. ‘Heartbreaker’ takes the Vaccines' sing-along choruses and classic strum for a downtown drive whilst ‘The Witch’ could easily have fallen off Arcade Fire’s ‘Neon Bible’, the moodiness of Warpaint or Interpol backed by weaving guitar lines and organ. Apart from the title track which sounds like the poppier moments of The Cure set adrift in Blondie’s ‘Union City Blue’ the second half of the album is more introspective and melancholic than the first but it feels like a subtle transition, anchored throughout by Hamilton Leithauser’s strong clear vocals. Closer ‘Dreamboat’ takes the album full circle with angelic retro harmonies and a guitar line that recalls producer Phil Ek’s work with Fleet Foxes.

The Walkmen have risen, fallen, grown-up and risen again from the ashes.
Heaven? Close enough.


8.0

Max Sefton